Sewing Success?: Employment and Wages Following the End of the Multi-fibre Arrangement (Directions in Development: Poverty) - Softcover

 
9780821387788: Sewing Success?: Employment and Wages Following the End of the Multi-fibre Arrangement (Directions in Development: Poverty)
Softcover
ISBN 10: 0821387782 ISBN 13: 9780821387788
Verlag: World Bank Publications, 2012

Inhaltsangabe

Sewing Success? Employment, Wages, and Poverty following the End of the Multi-Fibre Arrangement (MFA) analyzes the impact of the 2004 MFA phaseout on key social indicators in major apparel-exporting developing countries. This study provides important policy insights on how to maximize the poverty-reduction potential of the apparel industry in a post-MFA environment: The significant post-MFA reallocation of production across countries did not necessarily match predictions. Wage differences explain some of the production shifts, but domestic policies targeting the apparel industry, ownership type, and functional upgrading of the industry also played important roles. Using exports as a metric of success in terms of reducing poverty is insufficient. Falling exports usually meant a loss of opportunities for low-income workers, but rising exports did not always benefit poor workers. Rising global competition may induce a shift toward higher-value production and services that are often less labor- and female-intensive. Post-MFA apparel workers experienced changes in both short- and long-run wage components as well as employment. It is important to understand these different determinants of poverty. Countries that actively promoted industry upgrading or established a niche position experienced larger increases in exports. Since upgrading does not always correspond to increases in employment or wages, it is also crucial to develop worker skills and improve working conditions. In short, export and economic growth alone are not enough; the composition of growth also matters. Poverty falls if employment or wages increase for the people at the lower end of the income distribution, and countries that experience growth in labor-intensive sectors are more likely to reduce poverty. This book will be of interest to academics, policy makers, and decision makers in nongovernmental organizations who work in the areas of international trade, development, and poverty.

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Reseña del editor

The end of the MFA was followed by rising apparel exports, falling prices, and a reallocation of production and employment between countries. There were also significant changes within countries. The first main finding of this report is that export and employment patterns after the MFA/ATC did not necessarily match predictions. While many predicted that production would shift to low-wage countries, this book shows that only 13 percent of variation in export changes post-MFA can be explained by the differences in wage levels. Second, changes in exports are usually, but not always, good indicators of what happens to wages and employment within countries. This is especially important for policy because it shows that simply using exports as a metric of 'success' in terms of helping the poor is not sufficient. Third, the Book identifies the specific ways that changes in the global apparel market affected earnings. The Book shows that wage premiums change in predictable ways: rising (in most cases) in countries that were proactive in adapting to the MFA phase-out and expanded their market shares, and falling in countries that failed to respond in a timely fashion to the changing environment. The Book shows that promoting 'upgrading' (defined as shifting to higher-value goods, shifting up the value chain, or 'modernizing' production techniques) seems to be necessary for sustainable competitiveness in the apparel sector but does not necessarily help the poor.

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Verlag
World Bank Publications
Erscheinungsdatum
2012
Sprache
Englisch
ISBN 10 
0821387782
ISBN 13 
9780821387788
Einband
Tapa blanda
Anzahl der Seiten
530
Herausgeber
Lopez-Acevedo Gladys
Kontakt zum Hersteller
Nicht verfügbar
Verantwortliche Person
Nicht verfügbar